Today's Bible Reading: 1 CHRONICLES 5:18-26, 6:3-15, 49, 7:1-8:28
1 Chronicles 5:20
And when they prevailed over them, the Hagrites and all who were with them were given into their hands, for they cried out to God in the battle, and he granted their urgent plea because they trusted in him.
The text tells of valiant men who went to war. They were men who were “expert in war”. They were skilled killed warriors who could handle their own in battle. They were seasoned soldiers. They were those who could handle a spear and wield a sword. They were fearless fighters who fought well.
Yet they knew that their skill was not sufficient. Their ability was limited. They knew that apart from Almighty assistance they would be annihilated. The battle would be lost. Their defeat would be decisive. Their hope was not in their own strength, shield or stamina, but in that of their Sovereign. He is the one who would enable them to prevail in battle. They carried their sword and called upon their Savior. They were great soldiers who cried to the only one who could save them. Their battle cry was to Him. He alone held the key to their success.
So, they cried out to Him for help. Their battle was on their knees. They petitioned Him and they prevailed by Him. They fought, but He fortified them. It was their trust that turned the ear of their God toward their trouble. It was their cry that caught His attention. He acted. They were saved not by their hand, but the strong arm of the Lord.
We too, fight great battles. We have enemies without and within that assault our faith. We have battles that can break us and struggles that could squelch us. Too many times we rely on our own abilities, and our own strength. But too often, we find that the opposition overcomes us. We are defeated. Our resolve leads to our ruin. “I got this”, “No problem”, and “I can handle it”, are all lies that we tell ourselves. We have been defeated before in similar situations, but we conclude that this time we will be victorious. We might prevail this time, only to fall again into the same sin. We find that self-trust leads to sure defeat.
Our only hope with our ongoing struggle with sin is the Lord. We must turn to Him at the first sign of trouble. We must trust Him to lead us to prevail against our problems. We must cry out to Him in our conflict. He will hear. He will respond. Our victory is not in our valor; our success is not in our strength, but in the strength of our valiant savior.
Today, consider your conflicts. Evaluate your encounters with ongoing sin. Isolate those embedded sins that constantly come against you. Take each one of them to the Lord and cry out with an “urgent” appeal for Him to come to aid and assist you against their assaults. Remind Him of this story, how He heard the cry of His struggling saints and gave them strength to prevail against their enemy’s onslaught. Ask Him to do the same for you, then trust Him to turn the tide on your transgressions that you might triumphant over them. Look to Him to find the faith and fortitude you need to fight and finally defeat these furious foes. He will come. He will conquer. Thank Him that victory is in reliance on Him rather than relying on your own resolve.
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